An earring is typically attached to an ear with a clip or a post. Those attachment devices can be uncomfortable, tugging at the ear and getting in the way when holding a telephone or other device to the ear. The posts can stab the wearer, too, when the wearer's ear is pressed back, as, for example, by a snug-fitting hat, a kiss to the cheek, etc.
Metallic earrings, especially silver and gold are highly desirable from a fashion, value, and ease of manufacturing standpoint. However, in certain temperature conditions and, when equipped with posts or clips, metallic earrings can be uncomfortable, when pressed against the wearer's ear. This is because metallic earrings, being good heat/cold conductors, adapt quickly to the temperature of the surroundings. Thus, a metallic earring, without clips or a post, is highly desirable. It must, nevertheless, be selectively secured to the wearer's ear (as styles often change) and, in addition, it should be insulated from the wearer's ear for maximum comfort.
The following list of patents were uncovered pursuant to a preliminary patentability search among the records then available in the United States Patent and Trademark Office: 1,140,975; 2,975,538; 3,831,398; 4,220,016; 4,273,145; 4,511,608; and 4,745,934.
The Frenger patent, U.S. Pat. No. 4,220,016 seems the closest reference and relates to a piece of decorative jewelry. A flexible and resilient pad is secured to the back side of the decorative portion of the device to enable attachment to the wearer. This is, according to the disclosure, accomplished by a layer of adhesive 14 and a second layer of adhesive 10 which secure a flexible and resilient material to a back plate 8. According to the disclosure therein, the back plate 8 is made from metal (copper being preferred) and the sheet of flexible and resilient material is made "as thin as possible." This, according to the disclosure, is to ensure "good heat transfer from the body of the wearer to the jewel." The present invention, on the other hand, contemplates a heat insulating thickness of material located between the decorative portion of the earring and the wearer's ear.
The other references generally relate to decorative devices for being selectively secured to a person or to specific adhesives and are believed to be of background interest.